tech spotlight

Joel Tenenbaum must pay $675,000 (£426,000) in damages awarded to the major US music labels after his request for a retrial was turned down.

Mr Tenenbaum, 25, was found guilty of illegally downloading and distributing 31 songs in 2007. A judge in Massachusetts ruled that the damages, set by a jury in 2009, had been fair. Mr Tenenbaum was 16 years old when a letter was sent to his parents’ home accusing him of illegal file-sharing. He was asked to pay $5,250 (£3,319) for downloading seven songs. He claims he offered $500 (£316) which was all he could afford at the time, and it was declined.

In 2007 the case went to court for the first time. On his website Joel Tenenbaum says that he counter-claimed “asserting abuse of federal power”. He refused to settle and a new trial was set for 2009. The result of that trial was the awarding of damages to the major US record labels.

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4. kaiserwilhelm reblogged this from techspotlight and added:

   If I were this kid, I’d work for straight cash, the rest of my life, if I could swing it. Fuck that record label.

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